Friday, February 26, 2010

earlier today, i came across a post that lauren at pure style home wrote last january about defining personal style. i'd highly recommend reading it if you haven't already - it really got me thinking. since i started blogging about home decor at the end of the summer, i have learned so much - new designers, new terminology, new techniques, new ideas - and there is so much still to learn. i have spent a large part of these past few months drooling over crisp, light & airy neutral spaces - natural fiber rugs, linen upholstery, dingy white french and swedish antiques, light blue for miles - spaces full of these things always catch my eye. but i've come to realize that what i like to look at in a magazine and what works best for my home and lifestyle are not necessarily exactly the same. do i really want to spend so much energy fretting over whether my dog is at home sitting in my pretty chair while she chews her bone, or whether my dear, sweet, beloved husband is going to track mud all over my neutral rug? previous to reading that post, i was joking with a friend that what i really want to be in life is a kate spade - lilly pullitzer - martha stewart hybrid, and i had a revelation - what i truly enjoy in the design world are bold patterns, bright colors and unique pieces. why should i dress my house any differently than how i dress my body? my daily outfits always include a big, bold necklace or chandelier earrings and pops of bright color in scarf of shoe form. i feel pretty confident in my ability to put together a cute outfit - part preppy and traditional, part trendy and fun, part artsy and bohemian. must this style philosophy stop with my personal accessories? i think not. and here is why:

hilary was the "get inspired" designer profile on my one kings lane home page today, and she immediately caught my eye because she was wearing an outfit that could have come out of my closet:

and her interiors are no less festive. (speaking of things i like, the word "festive" is one. i use it frequently to mean "pretty, fun, awesome, etc") she uses more asian inspiration than is my personal style, but overall i find her extremely inspiring. let's journey through some of her portofolio, shall we?

i love the window treatments, the mixture of fabrics on the couch, the side table and the sparkle of the mirrored tray:

in another view of that same room, i can see that we have similar taste in rugs. this rug nicely echoes the window treatments in a smaller scale. and i adore the bright pink and green upholstery (captain fantastic is starting to sweat right now - don't worry dear, i don't plan to cover our living room chairs in magenta):

i'm not crazy about the specific colors or patterns here, but i like the way the pieces work together: contrast piping on the couch, festive (there it is again) light fixture, gorgeous paned windows and door in a bold color:

and in another view of the room, you can see the oversized ottoman with fabulous nailhead detail used as a coffee table. i am obsessed with nailhead patterns like this:

shut up, i have been planning to make shams like these for my bed for months. and that suzani-esque window fabric is so fun:

this is the first room of hers that i saw, and it practically jumped out of the computer and smacked me upside the head. it's the pink drapes. and the turquoisey couch. and the oblong sunburst mirror. and the gorgeous cream chairs. and those yellow flowers. say it with me now, FESTIVE:

again with the pink and turquoise, and i am obsessed with a) louis xvi chairs b) dining chairs with a different accent fabric on their back. the crown molding with the crenulated detail (do you call it that when it's not a medieval castle fort? whatev) is my fave, and the chandy is just so enormous and fun:

i love the geometric detail of these chairs. and those walls remind me of a fabulous project that my friend mrs. jones is doing:

ok, too much chinoiserie here for me really, but i still love these pieces. and the natural wood tone with the gilded mirror and turquoise lamps and orange stools is so unexpected and fun:

i want to upholster something in the fabric of this couch. holy goodness, i heart trellis/harlequin/checked/gingham/plaid/etc. the side table is similar to the piece that inspired my console table makeover. and the gilded rams' heads coffee table, geezeohpete. i love stuff like that:

i think this is the other side of that room. i love that chandy, those ferns, the ottoman-as-coffee-table, the pillow patterns, and even that crazy metal palm tree arrangement:

another of her more neutral spaces, in color scheme but not in boldness of accessories and patterns. fun lighting, great upholstery, and the big, bare windows make this room almost feel like it's outside:

i want to make out with this vignette (or vin-yay, or vinagrette, if you're c-fan and can never remember how to pronounce things). it's the boxwood balls. and the wall color. and the starburst mirror. and the detailed chair. yum.

again, i love the bright pops of color in this one, and the fringe on the lampshade, and that plaid table skirt, and the 2010 pantone color of the year:

same room, wider view. unique artwork. great coffee table shape. love the armchair and the garden stool. and the dog. can't you just imagine this room before hilary got a hold of it? i bet it had dark stone and dark paneling on the walls and ceiling, but a coat of paint and some great furnishings totally brought an outdated space into this century. love it:

another view of that room. i love the textiles on the couch and all the turquoise accents. you can see my boyfriend vignette in the background, looking super handsome. hey there, hot stuff (wink, wink):

i just love hilary's use of bright colors and unique pieces. all of these rooms look totally liveable to me too, like you can appreciate their aesthetic beauty and their everyday function at the same time. in her one kings lane list of tips, hilary said she really likes to mix the high and the low, and she loves to work around pieces that her client already has and loves. sounds like my kind of girl.

Monday, February 15, 2010

i don't generally blog about food (mainly because c-fan does most of the cooking up in hura. i'm a lucky, lucky girl.) but i feel compelled to offer the following psa:

run, don't walk, to blue jean gourmet to get the recipe for "greg's brownies." then make them. they are seriously easy, and they are seriously the

most.

delicious.

brownies.

eva.

i baked them for my sweetheart on v-day, because brownies and vanilla ice cream are his favorite dessert. we devoured them. and then died. from deliciousness. they may or may not have upstaged my giant box of valentine's day godiva even. thank you, nishta!

Friday, February 12, 2010

not necessarily all at the same time. but aren't they individually delicious? i think so. every time i go to a fabric store, i linger over these patterns. last weekend, i also came across a deep rosy-colored cotton with a white print similar to that last fabric. i can't stop thinking about it. i may go back and get some this weekend for the heck of it. or, you know, for valentine's day. i need a little pink in my life.

Thursday, February 11, 2010

and remembered an idea i'd seen somewhere in blogland that would serve as a solution to this problem:

i covered one in silver leaf and did a little brush-on-wipe-off action with some plain ole black craft paint (to tie in with the silver of my starburst mirror, bedside tables and the silver tv). i used a gold leaf paint pen on the other frame to highlight some detailing (to complement the dark wood and bronzey hardware of my bed, dresser and other mirror). then i bought a roll of screen door screen at the home deep and attached it to the back of the frames with my handy dandy staple gun. voila, earring holders slash wall decor!

i wanted to hang them as a mini-gallery-wall with a few other pieces in the corner of our bedroom. i also remembered learning a handy trick through the magic of blogs - taping up pieces of paper in the size of your frames to figure out the best arrangement before pokin' holes in your walls. i'm too thrifty-neurotic and full of eco-guilt to use regular paper, so i recycled some pages of a pottery barn catalog.

first, i laid out the frames on my bed in an arrangement i liked, and i ripped, folded and taped the catalog pages together on top of them:

i also drew a dot on each page to mark the location of the hanger on the frame. this i highly recommend. then i taped the pages on the wall, arranged them until satisfied and hammered the nails in based on the dots i'd drawn. when the nails were in, i just ripped the paper off:

easiest. hanging method. ever.

and here we have it:

some gals like shoes; i like statement jewelry. obviously. and those jewels look way better hanging in frames than they ever did piled up on my dresser. fo sho.

Tuesday, February 9, 2010

you have seen this picture approximately 65 times already. but there is a good reason i posted it. that reason is that it is the only picture i have of that chair on my computer, and i'm too lazy to take another one. at present, that chair is ripped apart with sharpie marks all over it. because guesstheheckwhat? i am two weeks deep into a 5 week upholstery class at a local community college! and by local i mean 45 minutes away in another state. which was awesome when it monsooned all night last thursday and i sustained a heart attack for the entire commute. but you know, bravery and personal growth and all, so whatev.

my initial desire was to recover it in a natural linen and add a short, pleated skirt, reminiscent of this slipcover:

and then i remembered the man and mutts i live with and how much that chair gets sat upon and walked beside and whacked with tail. scratch that plan. at some point in the future, i may still make a slipcover like this, but for the permaupholstery, it's on to plan b: a light blue chenilley-type fabric + nailhead trim. thusly:

except with arms. and two rows of nailheads around the bottom. because that's how the chair is made. plan b also comes with the bonus that i'll need to buy new drapes, because the current ones are that color, and that'll just be too much blue. twist my arm.

i have never been more excited to drive a million miles in the dark by myself to spend two hours on the floor pulling out nine thousand million staples until my thumb falls off while listening to old country folk talk about their cattle farms and antique stores in my life. i can't wait to share the finished product! let's not get ahead of ourselves though: hopefully i can actually DO this thang....